3RZ Coolant Loss Advice

Hello everyone I am a long time lurker first time poster.

Last year I bought my dream truck - 2002 2.7L, Single Cab, Standard Trans, 4WD. The truck had about 145k miles on it when I purchased it, and I've put about 10k on it so far. Found a not quite color matched tall cap on CL shortly after which has been great for camping trips. The truck drive incredibly well in all conditions and has been a pleasure, but was definitely not treated 100% well in the past. My mechanic has recommended a number of non-urgent fixes including clutch, ball joints, rack and pinion, and shocks. So far I've done new spark plugs, drive belts, and valve cover gaskets.

Recently, I have started noticing coolant loss. There does not appear to be any external leak, and there is no tell-tale white exhaust coming from the tailpipe. I had a few mechanics and the dealer look at the truck and everyone is telling me that I likely have a leaky head gasket or a crack in my cylinder head. The truck failed a block test but apparently the fluid was "slow" to change color, meaning the leak may not be severe. Additionally, the dealer used a camera and was able to observe some coolant in cylinder 1. The truck occasionally will missfire for about 15 seconds on cold start, which could be explained by coolant pooling in the cylinder. The truck drives totally fine and has never overheated. I am still driving it now and adding coolant as needed. I am unclear how severe this problem is and how quickly it needs to be addressed.

Bottom line - I am trying to decide what to do and could use some advice. I have three options as I see it:

1) Have my mechanic inspect cylinder heads. They quoted $2600 to replace the cylinder head gasket, but said it would be an additional $800 if there is a crack and I need a new cylinder head. This is a heavy investment for me but seems like the only way to be for sure that the problem will be solved.

2) Use some sort of liquid "sealer". I've heard that a lot of people like Bar's Leaks brand and have had success with their products. I am unclear how well these work and/or if they can be trusted.

3) Sell the truck and move on from it.

Feeling very unsure about what the right next step is and would appreciate some advice! The truck still drives great as I mentioned and ideally I'd like to get many more miles out of it.

 

A head gasket issue can show up from being over heated miles after the fact and not knowing how it was maintained.
Any used car or truck u buy u might have the same problem.
If u plan on keeping it get the head gasket fitted or do it yourself, the 4 banger would be alot easier than the v6.
At 150k it's probably still a good motor.
The leak will get worse and will do damage to the engine

 

have to agree w/ 1997tacomav6 on this one.
If this happened to my truck I would get it fixed proper. Your truck looks well taken care of and a few thousand to fix it would be better than selling at a loss.

 

I would check around and see if there are any head shops in your area. They may be able to give you a better price to repair your existing head than to find a new one. They also specialize in heads so they may have other ideas as well. I would get it fixed though, it’s only a matter of time before it gets worse.

 

$3400 plus parts to put a new head on does not sound like a good deal...
that's ridiculously high.....

 

Thanks for the input everyone, seems like the community leans towards the permanent fix over the liquid sealers. I forgot to mention in the initial post that the quote I received to do the work also includes a new radiator and water pump. I am not sure how much this type of repair should cost but this offer was about $1500 cheaper than what the dealer quoted so it seemed reasonable to me.

What @superwhite18 is describing is my worst nightmare... it would be such a shame to replace the head only to still have the problem persist because there is a crack in the block itself. Is there any way to diagnose that ahead of time? Nothing that I am aware of...

Thanks again !!!

 

A cracked block is extremely rare.....dont think you can do it from heat...
they built them way too heavy.....

Cant say same about the heads.....over heat them and all bets are off....

Probably freeze the block is the only way....

Should be super easy to test with a UV dye kit....
kit is about $20 online and $9 for the dye at autozume.....


Probably get away with driving it for a while.....
if its a crack in the head the fluid loss with be intermittent...
however, if its a gasket leak....it will get steadily worse....

Eventually hot restarts will start giving you problems....
have to pull that one plug and dry it out.....
or risk flooding the engine...if it doesn't catch right off.....

You can use a sealant and buy couple years....but might be at expense of a new radiator and heater core....
The sealant would do nothing for a head crack because of the expanding/contracting .....but would slow a head gasket leak down..

I've seen where they were gonna replace the radiator anyways......so they just bypassed the heater core for time being.....lived without heat....

I've personally seen a 3rz go for two years with a gasket leak....retreating with the barr's about every 6 months......

 

ah nice ! Thanks for the tip about the dye kit. agree that is less likely, just a nightmare scenario in the back of mind really.

The heat hasn't been working for a while, I think the position selector motor went out, been stuck with cold air which isnt an issue where I live.

That's pretty interesting to hear that the 3rz lived for two years that way... do you know which barr's product was used specifically? they seem to offer multiple products that do the the same or similar things and I am having a hard time determining which is best for what.

 

Yeah the pain in ass one .... the Barr's one that cant be used with coolant...
has to be pure water....
but that was a significant leak going on there...

The other blue one that can be used with existing coolant is not as successful...
but might help with slow leak.....

rumor is they come out of the factory with a little sealant in them.......


Also to piss on everybody's parade.....
the pink coolant protects by coating all aluminum parts in a pink slime...
that may be a detriment to these sealants....

If you dont believe me....try to flush it completely out of an engine...
takes many hot cycle flushes.....at least half dozen.....

If you get a new engine....I'd recommend prestone original or peak 10yr......
those additives are pretty important to the engine's life....
worth the change every 3 yrs......like $12.......at wally world....
equates to about a penny a day......

 

fix it and keep it. You have a nice looking truck. If you repair and the problem is solved, you'll have a 1st gen that will last you for years.

 

My parade used umbrellas, so no problem here. But what you said did pique my interest.

ANY coating on the internal engine metals would distract from proper heat transfer of that metal to the coolant. Even a thin glazing (i.e. acid etch (iron parts)) will reduce the cooling effect.
I'm struggling with understanding why an engineer would think to introduce a product which hinders the cooling by covering the transfer surfaces.

Of course the coolant does more than just cool (raises the boiling point, lubricates, protects from corrosion, lowers the freeze point, etc.) so I get that it's a true challenge for the chemists to create a worthy product. But to purposely make one that insulates the metal?

No argument with you about how difficult it can be to completely flush out ALL of the coolant. I would lean more towards attributing that to internal crevasses, pockets, corners, or the like; not to a clingy coating.

I am NOT an Engineer, I do not know enough about coolant to say that you are right or wrong. I'm only saying that the heat from the metal gets passed to the coolant as the coolant circulates over the hot parts. If there was anything in the way to slow down that transfer, well...


For the OP: my two cents - repair the engine. Do not add foreign substances to the coolant (and never to the oil!).

 

The single most important thing is to protect the aluminum and still protect and lube the seals scattered around...

They accomplished that for sure......but I dont like their solution....
Even Honda uses the blue stuff.....not the H.O.A.T....

I look at the denso cooling system as kinda a starter toner cartridge that you get when you buy a lazer printer....
That cartridge will be fine .....if you just print a few documents here and there....
but if you get down to business.....not so much....

5vz are little more fortunate when it comes to overheating probs.....but there are far too many head gasket failures on the 3Rz's...

Like I said, thats the way a lot here inherent their taco's.....a lot of times sitting for years waiting on a HG job....

Think the pink stuff was an environmental move......non toxic to pets in small doses....

Only good I can say about the pink stuff.....its easier to track down leaks and seepage....

 

Is that $3400 a dealer quote?

 

I’d look in the regional threads and find a mechanic on this site, they might offer a better price

 

Need to find a pure engine mechanic.....
unfortunately I had to wait in a 4 month line to get mine done...
and had to dolly it to another city...

gives you time to collect all the new parts......dont want to stick back on dirty old socks do you...

the good people are overwhelmed right now.....

the ones who work on the 3rz's and 22re all the time can do them in their sleep....

 

$3400 was non dealer quote, just a local shop. If there is no crack in the head, it will only be $2600. The are going to send the head up to a bigger machine shop in the bay area that they trust and speak highly of. $3400 would be for:
- New cylinder head
- All new gaskets
- New radiator
- New water pump
- All fluids replaced
- Labor

I think the dealers were asking closer to $4k and that was just for head gasket replacement with nothing else.

 

throw a head on it and call it good bottom end is basically bulletproof with basic maintenance love the truck tho !

 

Thanks @Calhoun4x4 !!! I enjoyed reading your story. Hope you are still having fun with your truck

 

love it more and more everyday these trucks have endless potential it makes me feel good spending money on something i love keep that truck for along time and it will treat you well. Finally time for me to start doing cosmetic upgrades since mechanically its solid question do you have the tachometer in your truck ?

 

So glad to hear i feel similarly. Want to invest in this truck and get as much out of it as possible. I do have the tachometer yes.